Horns a-plenty grace the stage on opening night of the county fair

Country music with horns? Yes. Which is one reason Jerrod Niemann’s new album is called “Free the Music.” It’s not a political statement. It’s part of his never-ending learning process.

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By The Record

recordnet.com

By The Record

Posted Sep. 19, 2012 at 10:21 AM

By The Record
Posted Sep. 19, 2012 at 10:21 AM

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Country music with horns? Yes. Which is one reason Jerrod Niemann’s new album is called “Free the Music.” It’s not a political statement. It’s part of his never-ending learning process.

“I’m so excited,” Niemann said of his fourth album, being released Oct. 2. “I just keep educating myself. I have respect for country music’s history. Man, you know, one of the biggest misconceptions is horns. People aren’t aware of it. Country music people are educated on the pedal-steel guitar. But it wasn’t invented ’til 1948.”

However, Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys shook things up in 1944 — deploying horns on “New San Antonio Rose.”

Niemann, who reinforms folks about that overlooked musical history on “Free the Music,” demonstrates it with his horn-powered, eight-man band Thursday night when the San Joaquin County Fair opens.

Read Thursday’s Record for more on this story by staff writer Tony Sauro